News / Features

Multifamily Construction Picks Up Where it Left Off in 2015, Drives Market

It was the same old story in January, with multifamily construction leading the way. Another year, another setting for multifamily dominance in residential construction. That was the central lesson from the Census Bureau’s latest report, which found multifamily permits, starts

Zillow Officially Acquires Trulia for $2.5B, Gives Birth to ‘Zillow Group’

Zillow yesterday completed its acquisition of Trulia, shelling out $2.5 billion for its former rival and forming the “Zillow Group,” the parent company that will now house not only the Zillow and Trulia brands, but also StreetEasy and HotPads. Though nothing has

Fed Study: Student Debt Clearly Pushing Down Millennial Homeownership

A new study from the Federal Reserve brings more evidence to the table on the damaging economic effects of high student debt burdens We’re written in the past about the effects of student loan debt on the housing market

Should Real Estate Agents Prepare For the Drone Revolution? Not So Fast

Sure, the FAA finally ruled on drones, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the drone floodgates are now open. After considerable deliberation and anticipation, the Federal Aviation Administration finally unveiled its regulations for commercial drone usage on Sunday, which, in tandem

FTC Approves Zillow’s Acquisition of Trulia, Closure Expected Soon

After a considerable waiting period, it looks like Zillow will officially acquire Trulia. It was way back in July 2014 when Zillow first announced its $2.9 billion acquisition of syndication rival Trulia, and now, after considerable anticipation, it seems

Coldwell Banker Appoints New VP at Wayland and Sudbury Offices

Susan Tsantes has been appointed vice president and sales manager of the Sudbury and Wayland offices for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in New England. Tsantes will be responsible for the day-to-day operations and oversight of approximately 75 real estate

Are Certain Kinds of Mortgages Easier to Attain Than Others?

The last couple weeks, we’ve been analyzing exclusive numbers from the CoreLogic Housing Credit Index, a detailed look at mortgage availability. Our central question has been a simple one: is it any easier, nowadays, to attain a mortgage? And after

Cash Sales Fall Below Pre-Crisis Levels

CoreLogic report shows widespread drops in cash sales. Cash sales continued to drop in November, according to a new report from CoreLogic, which found an increasingly significant portion of all-cash buyers leaving the market, particularly investors. Ebbing closer to

3 Promising Graphs on the Nation’s Mortgage Markets

It’s been a rollercoaster ride following the nation’s mortgage markets, so we decided to take a more long-term view at some of the key stats at play – and how, with only one exception, things have improved by quite

Should Agent Commission Splits Be Public Record?

Agents never publicly disclose their splits, but should that change? Howard Schultz, the famed CEO of Starbucks, recently proclaimed that “the currency of leadership is transparency,” and his comment snuggled up quite nicely with what is a new trend

NAR Spends Millions for Washington Lobbyists

Last year NAR outspent some of the most influential companies and groups in the U.S. Was it all for influence? In 2014, Koch Industries, capital generator for the infamously influential Koch brothers, shelled out nearly $14 million in lobbying

In Boston, Black Mortgage Applicants Denied Three Times the Rate of White Applicants

Minority groups have a harder time accessing mortgages in the U.S., including here in Boston. In the Boston metro area, 22.8 percent of African-Americans are denied in their applications for conventional mortgages, according to a new analysis from Zillow; that’s three times

Massachusetts Foreclosures Continue Beating Nation

Foreclosure activity in 2014 ended well, but pockets remain in dire straights. To cap off 2014, the national foreclosure inventory continued deflating, falling a staggering 34 percent year-over-year, according to CoreLogic’s newest foreclosure report. As of December, the nation’s

Boston Begins 2015 with Modest, Realistic Price Gains

Boston did not set the world on fire with its rise in asking prices, but that’s perfectly fine Asking prices in Boston began 2015 on a sobering note, according to the Trulia Price Monitor. Prices were up 4.2 percent year-over-year in January,

Do the Seasons Really Make a Difference in Boston Real Estate? Not Really

One may think that warmer months are better for selling homes, but the data tells another story. What if we were to tell you that it really makes no difference when you list your client’s home, in terms of

3 Highly Positive Details in the Government’s New Jobs Report

There were some very positive things to report in the government’s latest job numbers. The U.S. economy started out 2015 with a bang, adding 257,000 jobs in January, according to the latest report from the Labor Department. Of course, there

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